| Not So Nice Anymore | |||||
| |||||
| What: Since the Five-in-One have started to exist as individuals more and more one of them has stopped being the perfect student that the rest are. 157 gets a first hand view of what exactly Esme Frost is up to. | |||||
{{{logtext}}}
Another day at the library, another case of 157 atop a table. He isn't going to use a chair in here until there's only one book left that he hasn't read--sitting /on/ the table just works so much better for reading multiple things at once. The librarian is long since resigned to the fact that he's never going to use the library like a normal person, and doesn't even bat an eye anymore. Today's reading? Oddly, he's got several books on stage magic and card tricks...along with a deck of cards. Considering his complete and total lack of physical coordination, that's pretty much guaranteed to end up with cards /everywhere/ at some point in the future...but the disaster hasn't happened quite yet.
Esme Frost (formerly Cuckoo) was once part of the Five-in-One. Now she is free. Free of that prattling goody-two shoes Sophie. Free of Irma's kindness and soft heart. Free of Phoebe's bossing around and 'push the limits' personality And most of all free of that passively little stick in the mud Celeste. She no longer had to fight for dominance to get her plans and actions put into place. And so fart, it had been working well for her. Granted she'd have to return to the collective tomorrow, the five of them keep Three together at all times in order to maintain their unity so their telepathy wouldn't diminish. But she's gotten rather good and hiding her schemes from her sisters by now.
She barely even looked like the Esme most people had met. Her hair was pure white now, still long like it used to be, but instead a bit more wild and flowing than it used to be. Her make up was rather simple but dark, it matched the see-through lace shirt she was wearing, the black leather bra obvious underneath. Black leather pants and very harsh looking stiletto heels completed her look.
She did have a reason for being in the library, but it wasn't to study. She had a business here now. There was a designer drug on the market and she just so happened to have access to it. It was funny how few people expected you to sell drugs in a library.
She raised an eyebrow when she saw 157 though. As much as she was free of her sister's personality, Esme herself had a small soft spot for the odd little harbinger of alien apocalypse. She approached the boy and looked at what he was reading, "Yewie, you do real magic. Why bother with something as silly as stage magic?"
157 looks up from his studies. "Hello, Esme Frost," he says, in his usual monotone. The Cuckoos may have changed significantly, but 157's still a rock of stability...for better or for worse. "Yewie witnessed magic show yesterday. Magic show attracted large crowd of people who were willing to pay sums of money in order to witness tricks. Magic show also frequently involves the selection of volunteers from audience, who are brought into performing area to serve their role. Magic show therefore demonstrates usefulness in attracting large crowd, gathering resources, and providing a distraction as cover for other activities including theft, espionage, kidnapping, and assassination." He looks down at the books again. "Therefore, knowledge of stage magic may prove useful in future. Yewie is studying to determine if stage magicians should be added to list of observation targets."
"Stage magicians are frauds, darling," Esme said sounding a bit too much like Emma Frost when she did, "The trick people into thinking there is something going on when there is not. While their tricks are useful for little things. They are a worthless lot."%RShe shook her head slightly and said, "Learn the tricks if you can, observation target. No, not likely. No one takes a magician seriously. Those who do are weak minded fools."
"Subjects identified as 'weak-minded fools' may need to be manipulated as part of mission," 157 says, turning a page. In several books. "Yewie will observe magicians if it is necessary in order to better understand the usage and timing of tricks in order to obtain maximum value as mission tools." Flip. "Esme has significantly altered appearance compared to time before suicide attempt. Please explain."
"Whatever works best for your secret masters, Yewie," Esme said with a small eye roll to 157's statements. Seriously you can lead a horse to water and all of those other cliches.
A small smirk crossed her lips and she added, "Since what has happened between my sisters and I we have decided to spend less time in an oppressive telepathic link that forces us to act like each other. As a result, Sophie is miss prim and proper red head, Phoebe kept the hair but likes to wear it up, Irma's a bit of an anime girl lesbian and Celeste is just like we always were."
She chuckles at that, "Poor Celeste, she really was the one who was holding us back."
"Understood. Five-in-One no longer maintain consistent telepathic link, allowing for individual expression at presumed cost to telepathic power," 157 says. Flip. "Yewie does not understand advantage of present approach. Individuality is not an adequate replacement for enhanced capabilities." He looks up at her again, studying her appearance. "Yewie...likes Esme's hair." A look down at her feet. "Yewie believes choice of footwear is dangerous and may lead to disadvantages in dangerous situations. Yewie advises replacement."
Esme actually smiled from ear to ear about the compliment. Oh yes, she had been hearing it from other students already. But she knew 157 had no real sex drive or the like. His opinion was not an attempt to get into her pants, "I like the hair too. I thought about cutting it but it has it's uses this long."
She leans down and pulls one of her shoes off, "As for the shoe," she then holds it by it's toe and the end of the heel sticks out, "it makes a handy little weapon."
157 doesn't have any particular expression, as usual, but somehow from how quickly he looks back down to his book, he gives off a sense of 'unimpressed'. "Value of shoe as weapon is limited and outweighed by awkwardness when forced to move rapidly. Yewie advises Esme to replace shoe choice and acquire concealable knife. This will retain advantage of surprise in weapon choice, while allowing for shoe choice providing for greater movement ability and grip." Fashion is just one of those things 157 is /not/ going to really understand for a while, no matter how attached he is to his fedora.
"I have one of those too, darling" Esme said in regards to the knife as she put her shoe back on, "But they make a handy back up. Plus they make my calves look amazing,"
As they were talking a blonde haired teen, rather large in size walked over and taps Esme on the shoulder. She looks over to him and says, "I told you not to do that. Just think!"
After a moment the teen pulls out some money and hands it to Esme, Esme then reaches into her back pocket and pulls out a small inhaler and gives it to him, "Thank you for your business, Vincent."
157 looks down at her legs, then back up at her. "Yewie is not able to express an opinion on Esme's calves. Yewie does not understand criteria by which calves are judged 'amazing'." He starts to return to his study, but as the other teen comes up and the business deal goes down, he pays attention, watching silently the entire time.
When it is concluded, he looks back to his books. "Yewie was not aware Esme had begun to provide goods for sale. Explain transaction and contents of device 'inhaler' handed to fellow student. Please."
"Not aloud, and you must tell no one, Yewie. I mean it," Esme said with a very serious face, the type that may imply violence would occur if he did tell anyone.
|"I am selling a designer drug known as Kick. It enhances the mutant and metahuman genes to an enhanced level and provides a nice little natural high to the body and brain as well. I sell it to help some of the students relax and unwind."|
There was a lot she wasn't telling 157, but that's because she doesn't think about certain things to better hide them from her sisters.
Intimidation doesn't really get anywhere with 157, but clear statement of conditions does. |"Yewie will place information in restricted section. Yewie cannot hide information from access denied. However, Yewie will not speak of information to others."| He flips another page in the books. |"Explain purpose of sale of Kick. Yewie advises that enhancement of mutant and metahuman genes may become dangerous depending upon powers of drug user, particularly in cases of overdose. Additionally, Yewie advises that drug sales are illegal activity. Therefore, Esme should be cautious regarding presence of authority figures. Esme may also wish to adjust memories of customers to prevent identification by reading of minds with lower level of shielding than Esme's.""|
|"Purpose of sale is not your concern. It is illegal, it is not allowed, and I already do some of those things you suggest. I may not be as strong as I am when I was the Five-in-One but I am still a telepath. *A feeling of humor* and a Frost."|
She adjust her stance slightly and continues |"But mostly its for some extra money now that 'mom' is watching our purchases a bit more. And despite the silly pun, mostly for the kicks, the thrill of it. I'm not Sophie or Irma, I don't care what happens to this school or to a majority of my classmates. If I find enjoyment out of it. I'm going to do it."|
She smirks and then says, "Speaking of which, there was a young man thinking some very sweaty thoughts about me in class today. I think I'll go find him and tease and humiliate him."
She bowed her head, "Take care, Yewie. Do hope we all survive your secret masters arrival."
|"Reasons for sale largely emotional in nature. Yewie is not presently able to fully understand emotional reasoning."| 157 raises a hand, giving an almost mechanical wave. "Good-bye, Esme. Low probability that access denied would seek to do harm to Academy of Tomorrow. Low probability Academy of Tomorrow will present threat to access denied, and Academy of Tomorrow insignificant on galactic scale." He returns his attention to his books. "Access denied may take interest in Academy of Tomorrow or individual students or staff members. However, high probability interest will take form of study in current environment rather than harm or capture. Therefore, high probability all will survive potential arrival of access denied." Apparently, they may be evil aliens of some kind, but they're not the slaughtery kind.